Various tumor related diseases inflict man. Considerable research has been devoted to oncology and antitumor measures. Tumors are common in a variety of mammals and the prevention, control of the growth and regression of tumors in mammals is important to man. The term tumor refers to abnormal masses of new tissue growth which is discordant with the economy of the tissue of origin or of the host's body as a whole.
Tumors inflict mammals and man with a variety of disorders and conditions including various forms of cancer and resultant cancerous cachexia. Cancerous cachexia refers to the symptomatic discomfort that accompanies the infliction of a mammal with a tumor. These symptoms include weakened condition of the inflicted mammal as evidenced by, for example, weight loss. The seriousness of cancer is well known, e.g., cancer is second only to heart and vascular diseases as a cause of death in man.
Considerable research and resources have been devoted to oncology and antitumor measures including chemotherapy. While certain methods and chemical compositions have been developed which aid in inhibiting, remitting or controlling the growth of tumors new methods and antitumor chemical compositions are needed.
Marine organisms and particularly marine sponges are a potential source for chemically and biologically interesting molecules of great diversity. Some such molecules derived from sponges are described in Scheuer, P. J. Ed., Marine Natural Products, Chemical and Biological Perspectives; Academic Press; New York, 1978-1983; Vol. I-V; Faulkner, D. J. Natural Products Reports 1984, 551-598; Uemura, D.; Takahashi, K.; Yamamoto, T.; Katayama, C; Tanaka, J.; Okumura, Y.; Hirata, Y. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1985, 107, 4796-4798. The entire disclosures of these references are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Other interesting compositions derived from marine organisms (i.e., caribbean tunicate) and containing a .beta.-Carboline system are described in K. L. Rinehart, Jr., J. Kobayashi, G. C. Harbour, R. G. Hughes, Jr., S. A. Mizsak, T. A. Scahill, J. American Chemical Society, 106, 1524 (1984); J. Kobayashi, G. C. Harbour, J. Gilmore and K. L. Rinehart, Jr., ibid. at 1526.
It has now been found that certain cylic alkaloid compositions derived from extracts of the marine sponge, genus, Haliclona, possess useful antitumor activity.